Today is a new day!

POSITIVE_AND_FOCUSED

Thanks KM, sending the letter today, just checked on the DFW board. As the agreement goes back to 1999, they are confident it will be unenforcable. I know this will effect my credit rating, however, all other debts I will continue to pay back. Everyone else has me on reasonable rates. The thing with MBNA is this, yes I have a lot of debt with them - £10K - they increased my limit, offered me an excellent balance trf rate and of course I put as much with them in order to pay it back quicker. Then my sin was to fall over on the day I needed to get money to the bank to cover their dd the next day. I wasn't sure it was that reason, but my mum can recall it pretty well. Which is why I may come accross as sometimes totally fed up with my disability, organisations just couldn't care less of the implications of having one and everything does feel like a fight, a battle when all I want it to be is a smooth ride! VBut then lots of people could say that about their lives!So, anyway, they then put my rate up to 29.9% and ever since then Ive always been chasing the wind with them. Letters, phone calls to them have made no difference when stating my case, and so this week seeing that my interest exceeds my payment made for the month, and how they have simply upped my min payt by £58 next month, I simply can not do it anymore. If they are in breach of certain regulations, then how dare they be so hard on me! And thank god I never cancelled the card the first time I paid off my debt to them!!! For once one of my scatty times may just pay off for me!

Rant over!!! Must get organised!

POSITIVE_AND_FOCUSED

Help, Help!Is anyone out there reading this? Can you help me?

Am now having second thoughts about unenforcibility. I knew it would effect my credit rating, saw a friend briefly this am who happened to tell me that on the One Show there was a feature warning against it because it stays on file as a default etc. Have read up some more about it on the forum on DFW. Hadn't originally realised there was a question and answer section on there. Unenforcibility is almost like an IVA is viewed, one down from bankruptsy. Its the last stop before that. I am up to date on all my payts to every co I owe money to so do I want to take such drastic action?

So, I called MBNA again, amazingly they are going to refund £36 of charges they put on my acc this month for making the payt two days late. Then they have reduced my min payt from £58 over the amount I usually budget for to £22.73 over. Then once that payt goes out of my acc on 12th May I am to call the dept that sets the interest rate, and I have been assured they will be able to reduce the rate so I can finally pay the debt back. To what rate I do not yet know. Why I was not told this before, I have at all stages in my communication to them on this matter by post, by tel, their complaints dept, they have all told me the rate of 29.9% is non negotiable. Yet all of a sudden it isn't! I will be complaining about this. The many months of trying to get ahead of the debt when the rate could have all along been reduced. How sickening. And why this sudden help after basically being told tough over the last few years. I was told by the man I spoke to that it all depends on who you speak to. But I wrote to your complaints dept I said, and I was told no, its tough, you have to carry on as it is. Surely, they are trained to deal with individual situations appropriately. That surely falls within their code of practice. Are you saying they do not know how to follow your code of practice?

Anyway, I either follow the unenforcibility route and have a default, or I continue to make payts on the new interest rate whatever that will be from 12th May and have no change to my credit file at all? I think whatever decision I make rests on what they offer me re the rate on the 12th.

So, Im holding fire. Any of your thoughts would be appreciated.

Keeping_Motivated

Go with your gut, and that is to hang fire at the moment. See what the interest rate is and then re assess.

You are doing everything right, because you checking and double checking your facts and dealing with it, you cannot do more than that.

I still stand by trying to find the time to see your local MP. Your situation is down to disability and crime so I am sure he could help you get your interest rates down on all your debts so that you can pay them off fairly and squarely as you have always wanted. You are not trying to dodge out of anything you want to repay it, you're a star you really are.

Keep going you're doing well dealing with this x

POSITIVE_AND_FOCUSED

My MP may remember me from the time he took on tax credits for me. They wrote to me saying I owed them £6K they had over paid me. It transpired that they were the ones who owed me £1K. I knew I hadn't lied to them , I knew I had given them correct figures to what I was paying out in childcare and what I earned and so I stood my ground. It tpook 2 years to resolve, and in the end my accountant finalised it all, nevertheless my MP was instrumental in getting my appeal in place. Could I really go to him again on this? I need to ask myself if I can go through the humiliation of it. He would be thinking Im always a victim of yet another situation. All I ever want to be is a victor of my circumstances, I hear what you say KM, I really do, I just dont know if I could go through with it, him seeing all I owe, having to help me again.Having to explain how it all became liked this, just typing this now makes me just want to weep. I will think about it, I will. Must get on with work, have a lovely big order to process in the region of £800 and more books to pick up with lots of lovely orders in!!!
Take care xx

Keeping_Motivated

I hear what you are saying PAF and I can understand. Maybe you could write it in a letter to him rather than a meeting, then he may request a meeting but at least he would have the facts rather than you having to pour it all out to him face to face.

If a letter also fills you with dread then you know you are making the right decision not to ask for his help this time.

You have so many strengths and knowing what you can and cannot do is one of them so do what feels right.

I hope someone with more knowledge of MBNA comes along soon and posts some help.

Have a good day x

Different_Corner

PAF
I'm reading, just not very good with answers.
What do you have to lose by writing a letter to your MP ? You are in this situation through no fault of your own. You are working - d*mned hard - to make a better life for yourself. You don't expect anything.
I say go with KM, write a letter and see how it goes. Your gut feeling is usually right though.

poorbutrich

POSITIVE_AND_FOCUSED wrote: »

My MP may remember me from the time he took on tax credits for me. They wrote to me saying I owed them £6K they had over paid me. It transpired that they were the ones who owed me £1K. I knew I hadn't lied to them , I knew I had given them correct figures to what I was paying out in childcare and what I earned and so I stood my ground. It tpook 2 years to resolve, and in the end my accountant finalised it all, nevertheless my MP was instrumental in getting my appeal in place. Could I really go to him again on this? I need to ask myself if I can go through the humiliation of it. He would be thinking Im always a victim of yet another situation. All I ever want to be is a victor of my circumstances, I hear what you say KM, I really do, I just dont know if I could go through with it, him seeing all I owe, having to help me again.Having to explain how it all became liked this, just typing this now makes me just want to weep. I will think about it, I will. Must get on with work, have a lovely big order to process in the region of £800 and more books to pick up with lots of lovely orders in!!!
Take care xx

Your MP is elected by you to represent you. He's there to help his constituents (and claim his cleaning, shopping and furniture on expenses - ), not to judge. Please don't hesitate to call the office and ask for help, your previous experience with him is totally irrelevant - maybe even one of his assistants can help?

Also, you mentioned that you were asking some questions of your mother - were they in your head, or did you actually put them to her? I don't mean to pry, but her reaction, quite understandably, seems to be on your mind. It would be great to get it resolved.

Good luck and as ever, take good care of yourself....:A

hypno06

Hi PAF - you asked my opinions.....here goes. Remember (and this applies to ANYONE that is reading) that these are just based on ME and MY way of doing things. Don't shoot me down in flames!

I chose to take the path with the repayment of my debts that involved not ever incurring a default etc. This was for two reasons, one is that my career is one that insists on a clean credit record, so if I do default, I have to accept that I will be looking for another line of work. The other is because I believe, myself, that we incurred the debt, and that we should therefore pay it back - interest and all. And yes, we too had MBNA with their 29.9% APRs along with some others of a similar rate too.

That is not to say, however, that we did not consider all the options - as I think I have mentioned before, I looked seriously at DMP, IVA and even the effects of Bankruptcy when things were at their worst for us, before deciding to carry on as we were, and focus on just getting the debt paid, warts and all.

Some people will say that there is a difference, morally, between whether you incurred the debt through, say, extravagence and overspending, or whether you were put in this situation through no fault of your own. That is an individual opinion - my debt was largely through no fault of my own, as my house had major structural problems that we had no choice to do, but I still feel that I should pay back the whole lot one way or another. Others will feel very differently about it.

I will say, and I know that others definitely don't agree with me, that I don't like the current ability to write off debts through a technicality through unenforcability. That, is my opinion, and I won't make apologies for that - it is something that I have never even investigated because in MY situation, I felt I should pay back what I have borrowed - even though I have felt absolutely shafted by financial instutions along the way!

HOWEVER - there are cases where I am fully supportive of DMP, IVA, BR, and yes, even unenforcability. Take Mouseann on the DFW board for example - I think that it is absolutely the right route for her to take in the circumstances.

I think that if the worry of debt is causing you a disproportionate amount of stress leading to ill health, for example, that you need to consider these options - even if the DO lead to a default. I would say that health has to come first.

And I do agree that when you are paying the contractual payment, but that the debt just keeps increasing because the payment is less than the interest they are charging, that the word "reasonable" becomes a word that is not in their vocab.......and if they don't want to play a fair game, why should we. I remember pointing out to MBNA that it would take over 800 years to pay back our credit card with them.........hmmmm.......without wanting to sound hypocritical, I can shift slightly from my moral high ground when this sort of thing happens.

SO, that is MY opinion, based on MY circumstances.

That doesn't make it the right way, or the wrong way. And it is certainly not the ONLY way.

We all have to decide what is right for US on this journey - that will come down to too many factors to be an easy decision for anyone else to make.

There is no point in me saying "if I were you I would....." because I am not you, and I don't know all your facts. I only know ME (some of the time, at least!).

Factor in your feelings about defaults, your own moral feelings, both pre- and post- debt, your future need for credit (if you are not bothered about getting credit, does it matter about having a default?) etc etc etc.

Factor in your health, your earnings potential, the amount of stress you can deal with as a challenge, compared to the amount of stress that makes you ill, etc, etc etc.

Ask questions - get the facts, don't rush into hasty decisions, and don't be too proud to change your mind. You may decide to go down one route today, and then decide next month to do something completely different. That's fine - as long as you do your research first, and don't just jump in, and I know you will do your research!

And, perhaps most importantly, don't worry about what anyone else thinks. Don't worry about what your MP thinks as he looks at your numbers, don't worry about what I think, or what other people think. Don't worry about what your parents think. This is not their situation, it is yours. Just the same as my situation is mine, and no one else's. I've had people on here telling me I am "stupid" for not declaring bankruptcy, in the past. What do they know about me, and what do I know about them? Nothing, really!

So, basically after a lot of waffle, I will just say, do what is right for you. You are doing all the ground work, the soul searching, and the brainstorming, so I am very sure that whatever decision you make will be the right one. I for one will not criticise.

Hope that helps xx

POSITIVE_AND_FOCUSED

Thank you for all your wise words!

Basically want to forget yesterday! Picked up some lovely orders. Have so far sold £1500 and am really pleased with that, thats in 1 week, and am just about to put books out again for collection Mon.

However, I have found out my boiler needs a new fan which will cost over £200. The good news is we are not in the heart of winter so I can let that wait. Have been using the immersion instead for water and last night dd and I came home about 7ish, and within mins the over flow pipe was pouring water with great ferocity on to the conservatory roof. DD started weeping, thought we were going to die bless her. It was so so loud.The water was boiling, steam was coming off the roof. The other day this happened although water was not so hot, and we had to leave a tap running all night to stop it. The plumbeer - a friends hubbie - thought the problem had been resolved but obviously not. Its the thermostat apparently. Not much money apparently, but the labour is what Im worrying about. He came out last eve after his supper bless him and left just before the 10 oclock news. and hes coming round again today. Trying not to fret about the cost implications of it all.

I have spoken to my mortgage provider yesterday. The dates of payts is not working in my favour this coming month. I receive my WTC payt into my acc on the 13th, and MBNA is due out on the 12th! my mortgage is due out on weds, I will only be able to afford part of it, the rest later in the week or just after BH. They were v nice - Halifax - told me not to worry, said it was the best thing to keep them informed. I need to call them again as I think I will have to pay them less than I said in my call yesterday for next weds, that said next thursday my pics go up for auction and my jewellry bits tom. Please please let them sale for a good price! That will be just what I need.

That all said, the advice centre up the road are next open on Mon. Im going to make an appt. I'm also seeingmy sis on Sun, whether I can tell her the situation completely I do not know. But she wants me to open up to her to see if she can suggest anything. Anyway, we will have anice lunch there, dd will see her cousins, Im taking the pudding, will make a nice crumble from tins of peaches in the cupboard.

Need to have a good sleep, the last two nights have felt v fretful. I have that heart beating sensation in my chest. My head feels heavy , and I am just hanging in there.

That all said, met some new customers yesterday who I had a lovely chat with. They could see there was something wrong with me and were full of praise for me, that made me feel better! I didn't really know what to say, I never do when people praise my give it a go attitude, hope that doesn't sound arrogant. It was the reason I recd mu Distributor of the year award in the group Im in in kleeneze. Anyway, They didnt know how close to tears I felt going round collecting books yesterday thinking about everything, and just a few kind words they said to me made me feel that all will be ok, until the overflow went wrong last night and then I was panicking, trying to reassure dd that we were not going to die and its all ok!.

Anyway, today is a new day, and I am determined to be ok with everything. We are alive, we are not starving, we still have our home, we have a lovely weekend to look forward to, and I am doing the v best I can. For once, I have to believe it will be good enough!

hypno06

Re the MBNA payment, is the 12th the day that they collect the payment from your account, or the day that it is due to clear at their end?

If it is the day it is collected from your account, could you cancel the DD, then do a manual "faster payment" on 13th once WTC has gone in, calling MBNA to say "oops, sorry, cancelled DD by mistake, but have just make a faster payment which you should have by now"?

Then you can re-set the DD for the next month's payment so that there is no danger of you missing future payments?